October 13, 2020 CARES Funds Available For Eligible Families Individuals and families who are unable to meet basic and urgent needs on their own due to loss of income, reduced income, or insufficient income caused by the COVID-19 pandemic may be eligible to receive Community Services Block Grant CARES Act supplemental funds. About Assistance is available to help individuals and families cover costs associated with rent or mortgage, utilities, transportation, home repairs, food, child care, household supplies, and other needs as identified by the eligible individual/family. This assistance is capped at $1,000 and payments will generally be made to third parties on behalf of the eligible individual or family. Eligibility Criteria To qualify, applicants must live in Allegheny County outside of the city of Pittsburgh and be 18 years of age or older. Additionally, their household income for the 30-day period prior to applying must not exceed 200% Federal Poverty Level. For a household of one, this equates to $2,127 per month or $25,520 annually. For a family of four, this equates to $4,367 per month or $52,400 annually. More Information For more information, contact the appropriate community service agency below: For residents of Allegheny Valley communities: Allegheny Valley Association of Churches; Beth Kendra; 724-226-0606, ext. 10; beth@avaoc.org For residents of Mon Valley and eastern suburban communities: Human Services Center Corporation, Anna Hudson, 412-436-9537, ahudson@hscc-mvpc.org For residents of northern and western communities: North Hills Community Outreach, Stephanie Kobert, 412-408-3210, sdkobert@nhco.org For residents of southern communities: South Hills Interfaith Movement, Elizabeth Henninger; 412-854-9120, ext. 104; ehenninger@shimcares.org
August 6, 2020 Information about Unreceived Stimulus Checks Are you an individual who did not receive a stimulus check? If you didn’t file federal taxes in 2018 or 2019, you may need to sign up to receive your check using the IRS’s free online tool. About As a part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economy Security Act of 2020 (CARES Act), the United States Department of Treasury issued funds known as Economic Impact Payments (EIP), or stimulus payments, to most Americans beginning April 10, 2020. Stimulus checks were automatically deposited to the accounts of individuals who filed federal taxes in 2018 or 2019. Those who did not file federal taxes will need to sign up to receive their check. Participants may be eligible for a payment of up to $1,200 for individuals and $2,400 for married couples filing jointly, in addition to $500 per qualifying child. Who Is Eligible? U.S. citizens, permanent residents, and qualifying resident aliens who: have a valid Social Security number, could not be claimed as a dependent of another taxpayer, and had adjusted gross income under certain limits. Sign Up to Receive Your Check Individuals who have not received their check must sign up by October 15 to get their payment this year. To sign up to receive your check, use the IRS’s free online tool. The following information will be collected: your full name, mailing address, email address, date of birth, and Social Security number. The Non-Filers: Enter Payment tool is intended for individuals who were not required to file a federal tax return for 2019. Individuals may not need to file a federal tax return for several reasons, including the following: the individual earned an income of less than $12,200; a married couple filed jointly and together their income was less than $24,400; or the individual did not earn an income. More Information For more information, visit the IRS website. Share this flyer with your network.
July 17, 2020 Child Care Providers Eligible for PA Hazard Pay Grants On July 16, Governor Tom Wolf announced that $50 million in grant funding is available to help employers provide hazard pay to employees in life-sustaining occupations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hazard pay is intended to keep front-line employees working in vital industry sectors across Pennsylvania. About the Grant Created through the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, this reimbursement-based grant is available to employers offering hazard pay during the eligible program period and will be administered by the state Department of Community and Economic Development. Within the guidelines, child care is identified as an eligible industry (Health and Social Assistance). Hazard pay is defined as additional pay for performing hazardous duty or work involving physical hardship, in each case that is related to COVID-19. Employers can apply for up to $3 million in funding. Grant funds can be used for hazard pay for direct, full-time, and part-time employees earning less than $20 per hour, excluding fringe benefits and overtime. Funds can only be used to pay hazard pay for eligible employees for the 10-week period from August 16 through October 24, 2020. Submit an Application Applicants can apply for up to $1,200 per eligible full-time equivalent employee. The hazard pay must be paid to the eligible employee over the 10-week period of August 16 through October 24, 2020 as a $3 per hour hazard pay increase to their regular pay rate. Employers can apply for a grant to provide hazard pay for up to 500 eligible full-time equivalent employees per location ($600,000 maximum grant per location). Applications will be received from July 16 through July 31, 2020. To apply for funding, submit an application through the Electronic Single Application. More Information For more information or questions, contact 717.787.6245 or ra-dcedcbf@pa.gov.
July 14, 2020 Rent Assistance Available in Allegheny County Allegheny County is partnering with the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA) to jointly fund the CARES Rent Relief Program. Through the program, individuals experiencing job loss or loss of income due to COVID-19 can apply for rent payment assistance. Available Assistance Up to $750 per month per household in state-funded rental assistance. Up to $750 per month per household in Allegheny County-funded rental assistance. Up to $200 per month per household in County funding to cover additional household costs for gas, electric, and/or internet; late fees charged by the landlord and/or utility company; and/or court costs. Payments will be made to the landlord on behalf of the renter for a maximum of six months of assistance between March 1 and November 30, 2020 (may include December rent). Funds can be used to pay rent from March 1 to December 31, 2020. Eligibility To be eligible for program, individuals must meet the following criteria: The renter must have experienced job loss or a reduction in annual income due to COVID-19. The renter’s income may not exceed the Area Median Income for Allegheny County (adjusted for the number of people in the household). The renter must document at least a 30 percent reduction in income since March 1, 2020 due to COVID-19 OR the renter must have become unemployed, as verified by the PA Department of Labor and Industry, after March 1, 2020 as a result of COVID-19. Submit an Application To submit an application, visit the CARES Rent Relief Program page. Applications can be submitted from July 6 through September 30, 2020. More Information For questions, contact the Allegheny County Department of Human Services at 412.248.0021 or ahicaresrrp@actionhousing.org.
May 21, 2020 CARES Act To Fund Nearly 7,000 Child Care Centers In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Tom Wolf announced on May 20, 2020 that an initial distribution of $51 million of funding from the CARES Act will support child care providers in Pennsylvania. Distributed in partnership with the General Assembly, this initial funding will reach nearly 7,000 early learning programs. The governor asserted that a healthy child care system was essential as Pennsylvania reopens. Eligibility The Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) determines eligibility and the amount of award based on provider type, Child Care Works (CCW) subsidy enrollment, and regional capacity. CARES Act funds will be distributed to eligible, certified child care providers through regional Early Learning Resource Centers (ELRCs) and will be available in June 2020. Additional actions are required for child care providers. Funding Information In total, PA received $106 million in funding that will be distributed in two waves. The first wave of $51 million will be distributed per the conditions outlined above, to help providers prepare to reopen as counties move to the yellow phase. The remaining funding will be allocated following the completion of a study assessing the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Pennsylvania’s child care providers. Guidance for Child Care In the Yellow Phase, child care providers are permitted to reopen without a permit so long as they follow CDC and DHS guidance for social distancing and cleaning. Guidance for Child Care Programs that Remain Open (CDC) For more information, please contact the Department of Health at 1.877.724.3258. More Information For more information about Governor Wolf’s announcement, read the full press release. The attestation form and process for the CARES Act funds for child care providers can be found online.
April 7, 2020 Cómo pagarse a sí mismo, a su personal y sus deudas Además de los $3.5 mil millones para CCDBG proporcionado por el Congreso en la reciente ley CARES, existen múltiples opciones para programas de cuidado infantil, incluidos centros y hogares de cuidado infantil familiar, y aquellos que operan como pequeñas empresas, contratistas independientes, trabajadores independientes y propietarios únicos—para obtener apoyo financiero para sobrevivir esta crisis. Este taller virtual de NAEYC reunirá la experiencia de los sectores bancario, comercial y de cuidado infantil para brindarles lecciones de los primeros días posteriores a la apertura de las solicitudes de préstamo del Programa de Protección de Cheques de Pago y para ayudarlo a conocer cómo funcionan las diferentes opciones, cuáles podrían ser mejor para usted y qué pasos debe tomar para solicitarlos. Regístrese Regístrese aquí para el taller virtual en español.
August 5, 2019 For Children’s Long-Term Success, Families Need Paid Leave When a family introduces a new child into their life, the last thing they should have to worry about is if they have the time and money to properly care for and bond with their child. However, families across the Commonwealth are in that exact situation, with many caregivers involuntarily reducing their work hours, changing jobs, or leaving the workforce entirely. Early Interactions Matter While many may associate childhood learning with the education system, learning and development begin much earlier than a child’s first classroom experience. Parents and caregivers are children’s first teachers, and to support the long-term success of the next generation, we need to ensure that all caregivers are afforded the opportunity to care for and bond with their children. In Pennsylvania, there are more than 870,000 children under the age of six. Of those children, 41 percent live in low-income households. While about 51 percent of children birth to age five are in non-parental care for at least 10 hours per week, accessing such services can be difficult and expensive. Due to high costs, limited seats, and child care deserts, families across the Commonwealth are left without access to the affordable, high-quality child care services they need. The difficulties don’t stop there. Without child care access, families have limited options. They can rotate their child through a list of available family members and friends; reduce or shift their work hours; change their profession; or leave the workforce entirely. More often than not, these challenges disproportionately affect women who make up 94 percent of workers that involuntarily work part-time due to child care problems. While these options exist, all of them can lead to negative outcomes, including financial insecurity, inconsistent caregiving, increased family stress, and difficulties reentering the workforce. Research shows that positive interactions with consistent adult caregivers are important during children’s early development, as they optimize the development of brain pathways for the visual and auditory senses, motor and language processing, higher cognitive functioning, and emotional regulation. This challenge is more than just having someone around to look after a child. It’s about establishing the conditions children need to experience success later in life. Current Policy In the current family leave system, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides certain employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year. FMLA was designed to help employees balance their work and family responsibilities, providing this benefit to employees at public agencies, public and private elementary and secondary schools, and companies with 50 or more employees. However, just because unpaid leave is available does not mean that it is accessible. In January 2019, the National Partnership for Women and Families reported out that unpaid leave under the FMLA is inaccessible for 59 percent of working people. The Family Care Act If Pennsylvania passes the Family Care Act, families will no longer have to choose between remaining financially stable in the workforce and caring for their young child in the most critical period of their life. The Family Care Act establishes a statewide insurance fund, similar to Pennsylvania’s unemployment compensation fund, which allows individuals to draw down a portion of their salary for: Up to 12 weeks to care for a family member with a serious health condition Up to 12 weeks to care for a covered service member as covered under FMLA Up to 20 weeks to care for their own serious health condition Up to 20 weeks to care for a new child after a birth, adoption, or placement through foster care In Pennsylvania, families should come first. To ensure caregivers’ financial security, healthy relationship development, and workplace success, we need to make sure that they have access to the paid leave they need to care for their family. For the long-term personal, academic, and professional success of our youngest generation, we need to pass the Family Care Act. Take Action Paid family leave is not only a family value, it’s also a Pennsylvania value–and that’s a fact. Use your voice to advocate for families by encouraging the state government to pass the Family Care Act. Visit the campaign page to learn more. To stay up-to-date on advocacy opportunities, sign up for Trying Together’s Public Policy newsletter or visit our Take Action page.
